1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention is damper assemblies that include a set of damper blades which open and close similar to blinds or shutters to control the flow of air in heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems.
2. Description of the Background Art
Various air flow devices have been proposed with shutters that open to allow air to escape and which close to seal and prevent air from escaping at other times.
In typical damper blade designs of the prior art, as shown in Alley, U.S. Pat. No. 4,887,641 and Myers, No. 4,844,120, each damper blade has a transverse, V-shaped channel across its middle. A rod of cylindrical or other shape is clamped in this channel with added hardware, with the rod acting as the supporting member and the pivot axis for the damper blade. The ends of the rod extend beyond the ends of the damper blade and are journaled in holes in the frame for pivoting the damper blade.
It would be desirable to improve the efficiency of manufacturing of damper blades and damper blade assemblies while maintaining or improving performance. To reach these objectives, the present invention has been made.